Board of Directors

As fishermen, biologists, entrepreneurs, small timber operators and more, the SEACC board brings SEACC the diverse knowledge and experience necessary to recognize, understand and resolve many of the issues facing the forest and the communities which depend on it.

Joan McBeen (President), Tenakee Springs

Joan “Joanie” moved to Alaska in the mid-1970s after falling in love with the incredible beauty and wildlife of the Tongass. Joan lives a subsistence lifestyle in Tenakee Springs with her husband Jed where they eat primarily from what they can grow, catch or hunt. A retired commercial fisher and sport lodge owner, Joan enjoys exploring Southeast Alaska and fly fishing whenever possible.

Clay Frick (Vice President), Juneau

Clay Frick was a commercial helicopter pilot around Alaska before moving to Southeast Alaska in 1995. He’s trolled for salmon out of Port Alexander for 10 years, and keeps his freezer full by hunting and subsistence fishing for sockeye. As often as he can, he braves the outer coast to get to his favorite subsistence sockeye run in Red Fish Bay.

Clayton Jernigan (Secretary), Juneau

Drawn to the wild lands of the Tongass and the teeming waters of the Inside Passage, Clayton moved to Juneau in 2006 and went to work as an attorney for Earthjustice. His career in environmental law continues today in the public sector, with a practice that focuses on fisheries and protected species. In his free time, Clayton enjoys visits to Berners Bay and other wild places with his family, and many forms of self-propelled adventure, be it kayaking the waters of Lynn Canal or hiking, climbing, or skiing through the forested mountains that surround Juneau. Clayton is also on the board of Friends of Berners Bay.

Mike McKimens (Treasurer), Craig

Mike McKimens was the Public Works Director for the City of Craig on Prince of Wales Island for over 20 years. He recently helped the city heat three buildings with wood waste. Now semi-retired, Mike works part time for a local engineering firm, helps developing countries improve their water and wastewater utilities and runs a marine charter business. Mike worked with the Forest Service, local mills and Prince of Wales Island communities to design the micro-sale timber program that supplies affordable and sustainable timber to dozens of small mills.

Marian Allen, Sitka

Marian is a longtime educator in Southeast Alaska and currently helps develop online professional training courses and teaches as an adjunct faculty member at the Sitka campus of the University of Alaska Southeast. After traveling the Inside Passage by ferry in 1978, Marian moved to a small island in Sitka Sound in 1979 where she raised her family and taught, tutored and developed curricula mostly on cold water safety and survival. These jobs provided Marian opportunities to travel extensively in Southeast Alaska. With “the sea in her blood” and a longstanding love for the mountains and trees, Marian enjoys hiking, sailing, and subsistence fishing from her skiff, and getting away to the wilderness as often as she can. Marian is also on the board of and active with the Sitka Conservation Society.

Tina Brown, Juneau

Throughout most of her life, though she has lived in five different states and two different countries, Tina vacationed only in Alaska to backpack in its wilderness. When she finally retired from teaching high school English, she headed to Juneau. She, her husband and their dog and two cats live “out the road” where Tina enjoys wildlife, wild growth, wild weather and whale watching. She and her husband own and operate a small, upscale whale watching business in Juneau, Weather Permitting. Tina has been active in wildlife and conservation issues for her entire adult life, particularly involving Alaska (she is currently also involved with the Alaska Wildlife Alliance). Her retirement allowed Tina to focus her efforts. For indoor relaxation, Tina loves to read and to get frustrated with 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzles.

Eric Kocher, Haines

Eric moved to Haines in the summer of 2007 so he could experience and explore Alaska’s wild and beautiful places, or just step outside and “touch the mountains.” In 1981, he climbed Denali along the seldom-traveled South Buttress route and he has twice competed in the Yukon River Quest, the world’s longest annual canoe and kayak marathon. A public interest attorney before moving to Southeast Alaska, Eric accepts court appointments to represent those who cannot afford an attorney, but he spends most of his time outside the courtroom guiding raft and kayak trips, volunteering on an ambulance crew, and spinning jazz and country music on local public radio. Eric is an active member of the Haines-based organization and SEACC member group Lynn Canal Conservation.

Bart Koehler, Juneau

Bart Koehler was twice SEACC’s executive director and as such helped enact the Tongass Timber Reform Act of 1990, protecting more than 1.4 million acres of prime Tongass wildlands. In his long conservation career, Bart has played a leading role in the lasting protection of more than 8 million acres of wild places including recent successes in Nevada, Montana, Virginia, New Hampshire, Vermont, South Dakota, Puerto Rico, and Oregon. Bart received his B.A. in Geography from the State University of New York at Albany and his M.S. in Natural Resource Management and Planning from the University of Wyoming. He also worked as a ranch hand for several years and has recorded two albums of original music with his band, the Coyote Angels.

Steve Lewis, Tenakee Springs

Steve came to Alaska in the early 70’s to climb in the Chugach Range. He put himself through college fighting wildfires while based out of Glennallen. Steve moved to Alaska permanently in 1987 to obtain his MS in Wildlife Management from the University of Alaska. Since then Steve’s career as a biologist has allowed him work across the state, studying everything from Stellar sea lions, humpback and killer whales to marine invertebrates. Steve spends much of his time underground, where he has explored and mapped caves in Southeast Alaska. He is the director of the Tongass Cave Project and is the conservation director for Glacier Grotto. Steve and his wife built a remote off-grid home outside of Tenakee Springs where they have lived since 1998.

Victoria McDonald, Ketchikan

Mike Sallee, Ketchikan

Mike was born in Ketchikan and, with the exception of college in Fairbanks and three years in the Army, he’s lived in Southeast Alaska ever since. An adventurer at heart he is not afraid of hard work. Mike spent much of his life as a deck hand on a variety of commercial fishing vessels in Southeast waters and as far away as Monterey to the south and the Aleutian Islands to the north and west. In between, he’s done extended solo kayak trips around Southeast Alaska, climbed Denali and skied the Iditarod trail. Now, Mike harvest dives for sea cucumbers in the fall and owns and operates a small sawmill the rest of the year.

Ray Sensmeier, Yakutat

Stephen Todd, Wrangell

Stephen Todd first came to Wrangell in the 1990’s to canoe the Stikine River. He now works on the Stikine for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, conducting salmon studies. When not on the river, Stephen and his wife can often be found remodeling their home, with lumber from small, local mills, using five different species of Tongass wood, so far. Stephen has served on the Wrangell/Petersburg Resource Advisory Board, currently serves on the Community Advisory Board for the public radio station in Wrangell, and is actively involved in the Wrangell Resource Council.

Wayne Weihing, Ketchikan

Wayne has lived in Ketchikan most of his life. A jack of all trades, Wayne has worked for the Ketchikan Pulp Company, fished and worked at a variety of jobs. He currently crafts top-quality wood products and is increasingly enjoying working with alder wood.

Document Actions

Print this

Sections